(REC)²

I am huge fan of the original horror film "REC," which of course inspired the American remake "Quarantine." So of course, once I heard that they were making the sequel I was up for it completely. The first film still scares me to this day, even though I've watched it several times. While I'm not sure I could have the same experience with REC 2, the movie is still a great horror film.

REC 2 starts almost immediately after the events that took place in the first film, and follows members of the S.W.A.T. team going to the apartment complex from the first film. Equipped with video cameras, they go in to find any remaining characters, and find the antidote to the virus that is spreading. We also follow a group of teenagers who end up finding their way in too. We see both vantage points, including the horror that both teams face.

The way this film is shot is breathtaking. In the first film, we had only one perspective from a TV camera. In this film, the S.W.A.T. team uses cameras that can link to mini cameras so that when one of the characters is on his own we can see what's going on. Some may feel this doesn't keep the realism, but I feel it does. Law-enforcement men take cameras with them all the time, and if you were a kid going into the apartment to see what's going on, naturally you would have a camera. In terms of a technical achievement, REC 2 definitely brings it up a level.

In the last film, what this virus may be is merely hinted at. In here, the directors move more into the mythology they created and expand it. We learn, without giving too much away, that the virus is much more than what we thought it was, something that leads back to the Vatican and religion in general.

While I wouldn't say the second film is as scary as the first, it still carries the creepy atmosphere set up in the first REC. There are many scenes were you feel trapped and you can't get out, and not knowing what's gonna happen next.

I was very pleased that they brought back Angela Vidal (the main character) for the second film. I felt that the actress did well, and the directors brought her character to the right point, which leads into my next topic: The ending. I was wondering how the film's climax would be and if it would top the first film's ending, which goes down as one of the most frightening things I've ever seen. The answer is yes, it does go in the right direction, shocks you, and sets you up for the third film.

The biggest problem that I can say about REC 2 is that while characters in the first film were well developed and memorable, you don't get that with these new characters. Sure we fear for them, sure they're not bad characters at all. But none of them really made me think about them afterward, and the only character that was memorable was Angela Vidal, who was in the first film.

It felt a little too shaky at times for me. While it does keep the film tense especially in it's more obscure moments, I really wished the camera could stop and calm down at a few points.

While REC 2 may not be as incredible as the first, it still takes things that were done well in the first film and makes them better. So if you liked the first movie and you're hyped for the second, you shouldn't be disappointed.

Not as cohesive or frightening, as the first REC (which is one of my favorite modern horror movies), but still a tense and thrilling horror ride, more often than not. This is a direct continuation of the original, and happens in and around the same apartment building on the same night. 

REC 2 takes the supernatural elements of the first movie and further explores them, which sets it apart from some similar zombie-type films. No complaints from me there, I enjoyed the expansion of the overall mythos and the added backstory/explanation for some of the people and events of the first film. On the negative side, I did find the new characters introduced in this one to be almost universally unlikable and annoying. Did that ruin the movie? No, but I definitely cared about the well-being and survival of these people less than those that came before. There's also a slight feeling of repetition that comes with using the same location again, but that's understandable considering the direct plot continuance.  

REC 2 is basically more of the same, so if you enjoyed the first, there's no real reason why you shouldn't see this. It's not quite up to the same quality, but it's worth checking out to see the interesting direction the story goes in.

watching REC 2 made me realize how bad these directors and screen writers didn't want to make this sequel of REC 2 suck...meaning that it kinda felt like they were trying really hard to make a good sequel. the film turned out okay in the sense that it carried exactly from were REC finished and satisfied me with blood and jumping out of my seat scenes..but i really did't that much, also the demonic creatures, which we end up finding out about, thus creating the background story which wasn't very pleasing but fair. the camera view style was well done however the acting was a little over the top, sometimes i feel like hopping in the TV and telling them to shut up! Overall it did not surpass REC, but then again worth a watch if you want to see the story complete itself.

excerpt, full review at my location - REC splattered its way onto our screens three years ago, and part of its power was the fact this small- budget Spanish horror tale seemed to come out of nowhere. The sequel will struggle to match it simply because it lacks the surprise element which made the first one so great, right?

Apparently there are to be two more films, one a straight sequel and a prequel. The sequel will, like this one, carry on pretty much straight after the ending, but it will be hard matched to equal this one. REC2 introduces some humour which the first one lacked, but to go down that road too much will spoil all the hard work that the first two. We'll see…

A gloriously nasty Spanish roller-coaster ride up and down the stairs of that Barcelona apartment block – just don't eat too close to the film. Seriously, it's that gory.

Good sequel, about as good as the original. I thought the camcorder-perspective might be a worn medium, but it is well and originally done here. Suspense is great, effects are good, plot is fairly original. Maybe too many twists, too many contrivances and other horror clichés, but it all works out OK in the end.